Stanford University Dr. Vanila Singh made a big splash earlier this year after she jumped into a high-profile Silicon Valley House race as the Republican alternative to two warring Democrats, winning backing from party organizations and raising $242,000 for her bid.

But lately the first-time political candidate has been a stealth figure in the race, rejecting invitations to a Chronicle-sponsored debate and a League of Women Voters forum, and even skipping a meeting of the San Francisco Republican Party where she was billed as a speaker.

Her tactics have raised speculation that Singh hopes to lay low before the June 3 primary and slip into the November general election on the strength of Republican support, while seven-term incumbent Rep. Mike Honda, D-San Jose, and his main Democratic rival, former Obama administration trade representative Ro Khanna, bloody each other and split their party's vote.

National attention

The outcome is being watched nationally for several reasons: Honda is the rare House incumbent in danger of losing his job, his district is at the heart of the tech industry, and both Singh and Khanna are Indian Americans seeking to capitalize on shifting demographics that are most apparent in the South Bay but spreading elsewhere.

Singh's recently hired campaign manager, Matt Shupe, said Singh will be opening her campaign office in Milpitas this weekend and "is looking forward to the opportunity to articulate her ideas" in the race for the 17th Congressional District seat that Honda has held since 2001.

Singh's decision to shun the League of Women Voters comes as a contrast to the actions of her Democratic challengers and a later Republican entry in the race, Silicon Valley executive recruiter Joel VanLandingham, who have all have agreed to the May 3 forum at Fremont City Hall.

Shupe said Singh won't attend because the league undermined "the integrity of the electoral process" by allowing VanLandingham to take part. Shupe called VanLandingham "Ro Khanna's insincere candidate" and said he was recruited specifically by the Democrat to damage Singh's chances.

VanLandingham, a former San Jose mayoral candidate, said the accusation was "ridiculous."

"I've never met the guy," he said of Khanna. "I've been a registered Republican for more than 20 years, and I've run as Republican before."

Khanna said he was equally perplexed. "I have had no contact with this other guy. I don't know him," he said.

New strategy

Jack Citrin, who heads the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, said that with Singh still a mystery to most voters, "you would think there's some incentive ... to get more name recognition, to become better known" and attend events such as the league's forum.

Kumar told the publication IndiaWest that he had approached Singh as part of an effort he started with Texas GOP Rep. Pete Sessions to build a "pro-India" Republican team in Congress.

Singh suggested in January that the U.S. "take another look" at its decision to deny a visa to Narendra Modi, a controversial Hindu nationalist politician in India. The comment sparked alarm in the South Bay Muslim community, and Singh quickly backtracked.

But she still faces questions about why she is in the race.

A Chronicle story earlier this year documented how Singh was a "decline to state" voter from October 2005 until Dec. 25, 2013, when she switched her registration to Republican. A day later, she filed papers to run for Congress.

Alameda County records showed that she didn't register to vote there until 2002, when she was 31, and that she has cast ballots in just five elections since then, failing to vote in any local elections and primaries.

In an interview earlier this year, Singh said she ran for Honda's seat to address what she, as an anesthesiologist at Stanford Medical Center, saw as problems with the Affordable Care Act. She said she would never have voted for the law, which she called "bad ... totally political."

Singh expressed conservative views on some issues - saying she would not have voted for raising the federal debt ceiling, for example - and liberal outlooks on others, saying she was strongly in favor of a woman's right to have an abortion.

She acknowledged she was unfamiliar with the provisions of the Dream Act, which would provide permanent residency to immigrants brought here as children, and had no position on climate change, legalized marijuana or California's high-speed rail plan.

But her hiring of Shupe - a former executive director of the San Francisco Republican Party - as campaign manager may signal a new phase. Recent interviews show a more polished, confident candidate, and Singh has agreed to appear before The Chronicle editorial board next week.

'One to watch'

In recent weeks, Singh has been successful in getting GOP support, nabbing endorsements from Republican groups in Alameda and Santa Clara counties as well as from key House Republicans like Sessions and Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia.

Shupe said Singh, who came to this country as a toddler when her parents immigrated to the South Bay, has proved to be "a very attractive candidate" in the only congressional district in the lower 48 states with an Asian American majority.

"People believe in her message," he said, "and they know this is the new direction of the party."